Bus ticket aggregating start-up Abhibus has just closed a deal to raise ₹60 crore in the second round. The Hyderabad-based firm, one of the first entrants into the ₹40,000-crore bus ticketing industry, will use the proceeds on marketing and strengthening technology platform.

“We have closed the deal and are on the final leg of formalising it. About 80 per cent of the proceeds would be spent on marketing as we set our eyes on the target of gross merchandise value (GMV) of ₹1,000 crore in the next two years,” Abhibus Founder and Chief Executive Officer Sudhakar Reddy Chirra told BusinessLine .

He said he would only take a call on whether to go for an IPO or settle for an exit for investors only after crossing the ₹1,000-crore GMV mark.

The firm does bookings of 25,000 seats a day, or a quarter in the total online bus seat bookings that happen in the country. redBus leads the market reportedly with 40-45 per cent in the one-lakh seat online sales market. Once a crowded place with over 20 players, the market place now has a handful of serious players, with others sinking into oblivion.

He started off the business with an investment of ₹15 lakh in 2007 raised from friends and family and raised about ₹20 crore (about $4 million) in 2012. The firm, which employs 100 people, registered a GMV of ₹250 crore in 2014-15. It crossed the ₹250 crore in the first seven months of 2015-16 against the target of ₹500 crore for the year.

“There are about 10 lakh bus seats that have been digitised in the country. This means that they can be sold online. But of this only one lakh seats are sold, predominantly in the 12 top cities, leaving the majority of seats for offline tickets. The reason for this is lack of online payment avenues for passengers in smaller towns,” he said.

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